Breaking the Silence
by Hufflepuff-Sunflower
Summary: Lili Zwingli has been asked to help a family with their problems: Katyusha feels like her siblings and herself are drifting apart. Natalya has a severe obsession with her older brother Ivan, and Ivan... well... Ivan doesn't talk to anyone, save for his older sister, and is slowly but surely losing his grip on reality.
1. Chapter 1

_**So... I should probably be updating Two Worlds Collide, but... I'm kinda stuck with that at the moment... OTL I was struck with this idea... I don't know how. I think it was sometime while I was watching The Big Bang Theory... *shrugs* ANYWHO, without further ado (Ooh, that rhymed!) I present to you-**_

_**Breaking the Silence, Chapter One!**_

Lili sits in the back seat of the cab, her head bowed down over her notepad. Although the car seems to be hopping along the bumpy road, she manages to write neatly. Every so often, she looks up, out the window, to the clear, blue sky outside.

"So, like, what are you writing back there?" asks the taxi driver, as he blows a strand of chin-length blonde hair out of his face. "You're totally the quietest passenger I've ever had." Without raising her head, she answers.

"I'm writing a letter to my brother."

"So she finally speaks!" he laughs. "For a moment, I thought you were, like, mute."

Lili continues to write, despite his interruptions, slightly irritated. She brushes it off however- she was not raised to hold a grudge. A few minutes later, she looks up again, noticing all the brick buildings that surround the road. "These houses all look old…" she comments, absent-mindedly, as she puts her notepad and pen in her bag.

"Yeah… it's like, totally creepy."

"I like it."

"Oh. So… what are you doing here, anyway?"

"I'm afraid that I can't tell you," she says politely, looking out the window. "The client asked for it to remain confidential."

"Aw, don't worry! You can totally trust me!"

Somehow, Lili doubts that she can. "Well… I guess I can tell you one thing. I'm… sort of like a psychologist."

"Uh… okay…" He's not sure how to respond. "Well, hate to bring this conversation to a stop, but… we're here."

"Thank you, Mr Łukasiewicz. How much do I owe you?" she asks, picking her bag up from the floor of the cab.

"Fifteen dollars. I'm giving you a special, 'cause you didn't make a mess back there."

"Danke schon, Mr Łukasiewicz." She hands him the money, and gets out of the car.

"Do you, like, need help or something?"

"No, I'll be fine, thank you." He unlocks the boot, and Lili gets her rolling suitcase out. As she goes to leave, Feliks beckons her over. "Hey, um…" he says, quietly. "You're, like… not here to see the Braginskis, are you…?"

"Ja, why?" Lili asks, slowly.

"No reason," he says slowly, before talking again. "But listen, if you need me to come back, don't let anyo- any_thing_ stop you, okay? Just call, no matter what happens."

"Um, alright…" Now it's Lili's turn to be confused.

"Well, see ya later!" And with that, Feliks drives off. Lili watches the yellow car fade into the distance before she walks up the garden path, rolling her suitcase behind her. When she reached the front door, she took a moment to breathe, and gather her thoughts, before knocking.

She waits outside for five minutes, eventually hearing footsteps approach the door, which opens slowly, almost as if this were a horror movie.

The girl that stands in the doorway has blonde hair that falls in a sheet down her back, and looks to be in her early twenties. She gives Lili a slight glare, crossing her arms.

"Who are you?" she asks, harshly, and Lili is suddenly struck with fear.

"I'm… Lili… Lili Zwingli?" she says, almost as if she's unsure of her own name. "Are you Ye-"

"So _you're_ Lili. Yekaterina's inside," the girl says, turning promptly on her heel. For a few moments, Lili stands at the doorway, deciding whether or not to follow her. After mentally debating with herself, she follows the sound of the woman's footsteps, to what she assumes is the living room.

As she gets closer, she hears two female voices, conversing in a language she doesn't understand. One voice is cold and unfriendly. The other sounded exactly the opposite. Lili finds herself once again standing in a doorway, except this time she's able to see what's going on.

The woman from before is talking to another woman, this one with shorter blonde hair. She is the one with the friendly voice. Lili also sees a blonde man, sitting in an armchair on the opposite side of the room, watching the conversation as well. Even though she doesn't understand what they were saying, she can tell that the two women are arguing. She knocks on the door frame, unable to take this tension much longer.

"Um… hello?"

The woman with short hair turns to face her, and smiles. "Lili! Sestra was just telling me you were here!" She stands up from her seat, and walks over to the door to embrace Lili, who politely refuses. "It's lovely to finally meet you!"

"And you too, Miss Yekaterina."

Yekaterina laughs. "Call me Katyusha. Only Nata calls me by my full name." At the mention of 'Nata', she gestures to the other woman. "Lili, this is my younger sister, Natalya." Lili extends a hand to the woman, who merely glares at her, her arms still crossed, no attempt to be friendly. "Natalya…" groans the older sister. "You could _try_ to be nice…"

"I don't know why she's here," Natalya says, casting a glance towards the man in the armchair, the only one in the room not to say anything.

Yekaterina's smile returns, somewhat forced, and she gestures towards the man. "And this is my little brother- Natalya's older brother- Ivan."

Lili smiles at the man, and says hello. His violet eyes widen momentarily. He smiles too, but looks like he is trying to sink into the chair.

"Ivan, will you say hello to Lili?" Yekaterina says kindly, turning to face him. He shifts uncomfortably, before he slowly stands up, and leaves the room. A fluffy, grey cat, who had been hiding behind the armchair, follows him. Yekaterina follows, too, calling his name sternly. "Ivan!"

His bedroom door closes, and Yekaterina returns to the living room, tears beginning to form in her eyes. "H-he's not being rude… he's just…"

"Well… that's why you asked me to come, ja?"

"Yes, precisely."

"What?! Yekaterina, what's going on?!"

"Natalya…" she says, cautiously. "I asked Lili to come here because… because I… because we need help." She begins to choke up, but notices the confused look her sister gives her. "W-with Ivan."

"_I_ can help big brother!"

"No offense, Nata… but you scare him." It hurts Yekaterina to say it, but it's true. Natalya scoffs, and leaves the room quickly, muttering to herself. "Oh dear…" Yekaterina mumbles, wiping the wetness from her eyes. "I'm afraid we haven't made much of a first impression, have we…?"

"It's alright. First impressions are often misleading."

Yekaterina's smile returns, this time, not forced. "You're kind, Lili. Would you like me to show you to your room?"

"Yes please," Lili replies, readjusting her suitcase. She follows Yekaterina down another hallway, on the opposite side of the living room. There are various printed photographs on the walls. They mostly include the two sisters, and sometimes Ivan. In all of the pictures, all three siblings are smiling happily. Soon, they reach the end of the hallway.

"Here's your room. I hope you like it. There are spare blankets in the cupboard just there. Um… feel free to wander around. Only the bedrooms are 'off-limits'," Yekaterina says, finding this whole situation awkward. She smiles, before heading back into the living room. Lili hears the sounds of a television show as she closes the door.

She takes a look around the room. Pale blue wallpaper, and a white carpet. Much different to the old-fashioned wood panelling of the rest of the house. A single bed stands in the corner. There is also a nightstand, a desk, and a wardrobe. Lili packs away her clothes, making a mental note to ask Yekaterina where the local post office is, to send the letter to her brother.

_**So... I tried writing in present tense. Does it work? Or should I change it to past tense?**_

_**Normally, I would say a little bit about the backstory... but that's part of the story.**_

_**And yes. There will be future RussLiech. It's me, what can you expect...?**_

_**Farewell for now, and please leave a review telling me what you think!**_

_**Have a nice day~! :)**_


	2. Chapter 2

_**ARGH! I'M SO SORRY ABOUT THE DELAY! I've got personal business to deal with, and my mind is filled with other things... I haven't really had the patience for writing... and writers block has struck, too...**_

_**Um... this is still sorta setting up the story. It's not that long... I'm going to try and update a lot more often, and focus on this story... but I'm going through half-yearlys at the moment, and I have to read not one, but TWO books for English... so... ^^;**_

_**Oh, and thank you guys so much for the kind reviews. I hope I didn't disappoint...**_

_**Warning- There are SWEARS. I don't know if you're uncomfortable reading them, BUT I WAS UNCOMFORTABLE WRITING THEM. But as a writer, you have to go outside your comfort zone, right?**_

_**Um... ANYWHO. Enjoy~!**_

* * *

_**Chapter Two**_

After everything of hers is put away, Lili stretches. She's taken most of her things to this new house, since she'll be here for quite a while. Her half-brother, Vash, is in Switzerland for six months, or maybe even a year, looking after his mother. He didn't want to let her stay by herself, so she asked her 'pen pal', Yekaterina if she could stay with her and her siblings. Yekaterina was happy to have her stay...

On the condition that Lili could help her family.

Lili decides that she should wander around the house, to find out where the bathroom and the kitchen are. She's also curious to see what the rest of the house is like. She exits the room, closing the door behind her. The happy looking pictures on the walls stare down at her, the smiles of children not matching the atmosphere given off by their present-day counterparts.

She stops walking when she almost crashes into a door that opened right in front of her.

"Um... hello...?" she says cautiously, peeking around the wooden door. Ivan is standing in the doorframe, and gives her an awkward, apologetic smile, one hand on the doorknob. "Oh. Hello, Ivan."

He keeps his gaze away from hers, and mouths "Privyet..." before slowly retreating back into his room, closing the door slowly. She swears she could hear a sigh on the other side.

_Okay... that was strange..._ she thinks, turning around to inspect the door on the other side of the hallway. She shouts when she sees Natalya standing there, arms crossed, and glaring.

"He doesn't talk to strangers," Natalya says coldly.

"Well, that makes sense..."

"No it doesn't. He doesn't talk to _anyone_. Not even _me_."

"But I saw him speaking to Katyusha..."

Natalya's hands, which were by her sides, clench into fists. "Of course he does. Yekaterina's the only person he talks to. And the cat, but that doesn't count."

"D-do you know why?"

"No... but even if I did, it's none of your business. You know he was just about to come out of his room, right?"

"Oh... s-sorry?" Lili's apology is more of a question. She's sure this is the most awkward and frightening situation she's ever been in. She's confused as Natalya starts counting on her fingers.

"Six years... _It's been six years since big brother spoke to me,_" she says quietly, trying to hide her anger. "Today might've been the day when he did again!" she screams, storming into her room, on the other side of Ivan's.

"S-six years...?" Lili says in shock. As she explores the house, she tries to imagine Vash not talking to her for that long, and wonders why Ivan is so quiet, and why he doesn't even talk to his little sister. _B-but he said something to me..._ She shakes the thoughts out of her head, needing to concentrate on the house.

She stumbles across the kitchen, a fine room with archways leading into what Lili presumes is the dining room, and back into the living room. A set of glass doors leads out into the backyard.

"Oh, hello, Lili. So, you've packed your things?" Yekaterina asks, standing by a large pot on the stove. Lili jumps, not seeing her there.

"Ja. Thank you again."

Yekaterina smiles. "It's no problem. I didn't startle you, did I?" she asks worriedly.

"Just a little. I didn't see you."

"Ah. So, I'm guessing you're exploring the house?"

"Ja. This house is much bigger- and older- than the house my big brother and I share."

"Really?"

"Well, big brother doesn't like to spend money on unnecessary things. And it's only the two of us, so we don't need much room anyway... well... it's mostly me... big brother was always working." She decides to stop talking, and smiles nervously.

Yekaterina has a look of slight horror on her face. "Wait... you were alone all day?"

"Ja..."

"How horrible! I could never do that to Vanya, or Nata! Hmm... but Nata works, so _she'__s_ the one that leaves the house..."

"Really? What's her career?"

"For the time being, she works at a butcher's." Yekaterina laughs nervously before adding the next sentence. "It's a job where she can... um... use a knife."

"W-was?!" Lili asks, blinking in surprise.

"Nata likes knives almost as much as Vanya likes sunflowers. Don't worry too much. She knows what she's doing- my little sister's not an idiot!" she laughs.

"If you don't mind me asking, what do you do?"

"I work from home for a business, for my friend Matthew. I told you, I can't bring myself to leave Vanya by himself. Oh! Can you stir that, please?" she asks, pointing to an electric frying pan with meat and sauce in it. "I hope you like spaghetti... I was going to make something special, but I'm a bit tired, and my back hurts..."

"Oh, it's okay. Spaghetti is one of my favourite meals. My cousin, Ludwig, has an Italian friend, and he'd bring us pasta all the time."

"Dinner's ready!" calls Yekaterina from the kitchen, draining the spaghetti into a large bowl and stirring the meat and sauce one last time. She brings the bowl of pasta to the table, and Lili brings the meat. The two younger siblings exit their rooms and file into the dining room. Natalya takes the seat beside Ivan, who cringes slightly when she says something to him, and shakes his head slowly.

"Natalya... not at the table," Yekaterina says while dishing out everyone's dinner. There's seconds if anyone wants any," she says, before sitting down beside Lili, opposite Natalya.

The spaghetti is mediocre, not nearly as good as Feliciano's had been, but at least it was edible. (Unlike anything made by Lili's partner in cooking class, Arthur Kirkland, who had somehow burnt _their_ spaghetti so badly that it was shrivelled and black.) Lili said nothing, as she was raised to be polite.

"This is shit," Natalya says, pushing her plate away from her.

"Natalya. Language."

"You say you want to make a good impression on _her_-"

Lili and Ivan eat their meal in silence, trying to block out the two's argument. The only person Lili knows who swears more than Natalya is Feliciano's older brother, Lovino... At one point, Natalya says something, and Ivan scoots his chair as far away from her as possible. Yekaterina sighs.

"What did I say, Natalya...? Switch seats with Lili."

"What?! No!"

"Vanya, bring your plate over here. _I'll_ swap seats with you."

Natalya crosses her arms as Ivan and Yekaterina pick up their plates and swap seats.

"Stop acting like a child, Natalya," Yekaterina warns, before eating a forkful of food.

"Hello again, Ivan," Lili says as he sits down next to her. He keeps his head down to avoid Natalya's glare, and continues eating. _Another awkward situation... _Lili thinks, avoiding Natalya's icy glare as well.

Natalya is currently thinking back to old conversations with their cousin, Vladimir, and using those to plot over a million ways to murder the girl.

* * *

_**Translations-**_

_**Was-** 'W__hat' in German_

**_Ja-_**_'Yes' in German. (But we all know this.)_

**_Privyet-_**_'Hello' in Russian. (We all know this, too.)_

* * *

**_'Vladimir' is the name my friend and I use for 2P!Russia. That last part, about the conversations, is inspired by conversations with my friend... WE'RE NOT GOING TO GO THROUGH WITH ANYTHING, I SWEAR. _**

**_So... was this as bad as I think it was? It's still setting up the story, as I said... _**

**_Please leave a review! It really does motivate me to write more! (Also, any ideas/suggestions are more than welcome!)_**


	3. UPDATE

**UPDATE:**

**I had no idea where this story was going when I started it, but now I do, and I left out parts. I am in the process of rewriting it now. **

**This story will no longer be updated, but the new version should be coming soon. (Which will have the same title, unless I change it) Thanks to everyone who has favourited/followed this story... hope to see you soon.**


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